Now Promise Me
by Half Demon Alchemist
Summary: AU In Roy's opinon, Ed was kinda like a ghost now. It's been weeks since Roy's even seen the guy. After what Edward went through, it's not that hard to understand why Ed shut out the rest of the world. Ed said that he was fine, but he lost his sway and glow. So Roy decides that it's time he stops by to let Edward know that he's not leaving until they both see the light.


**Hello, enjoy this little one shot inspired by the song Friend, Please. I hope you enjoy, so don't forget to review. And it's like three in the morning, I have plans tomorrow, but I'm gonna write this anyway. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own FMA**

_**Now Promise Me**_

Roy Mustang stood at the door of his best friend's apartment. It had been a weeks since he had last seen the short blond, and he was starting to get worried. Using the extra key Edward had given to him in case of emergencies, Roy unlocked the door and pushed it open.

You see, on a normal day, Roy would never go as far to intrude upon his best friend's home without permission. He had manners, he respected privacy. But this wasn't an ordinary day. Well, it hadn't been an ordinary few months.

Edward and Roy had been best friends for years now, and to be honest, Roy had a huge crush on the younger teen. So Roy knew above everyone else when something was up. And there was definitely something up. Not that Roy could blame Ed for being so strange, seeing as his younger brother, his only family member had died a few months back. Alphonse was often sickly, and stayed in the hospital often. But the doctors deemed him stable enough to go home for a while, and Al being the selfless boy he was, didn't call the older Elric because he knew his older brother was working a hard shift at the time, so instead he chose to walk home and enjoy the sunshine he had only gotten been able to see through a hospital window.

And then he had gotten hit by a car.

The driver of the car wasn't careful, and didn't stop at the red light when she was supposed to, and Al happened to be crossing the street at that moment. The car crashed into him at full force, and Al had died on impact. Ever since then, Ed hadn't been the same.

Roy couldn't blame him for being so... Depressed. After all, his only living family member died just like that. Roy really felt for Ed, he did. But did Ed think he was alone in all of this? Did he not remember that he had people he could lean on? Did he not remember he had Roy?

It started off with seemingly random comments, such as one late night when Ed had told him that spiders had crawled inside him and made themselves at home, which Roy had dismissed with the excuse that it was just a sleep deprived Ed being strange.

Stepping into the apartment, Roy kicked off his shoes. Walking into the kitchen, Roy saw that it was cluttered and filthy. Dirty dishes littered the counter and filled the sink, the trash bin looked as if it hadn't been emptied in a week, and it probably hadn't. Frowning, the raven-haired man walked over to the fridge and pulled it open. It was completely empty, save for a carton of milk that Roy knew Edward wouldn't ever touch, let alone drink.

Sighing, he closed the fridge doors and walked straight to Edward's bedroom, not wanting to stop and look at the rest of the trashed and uncared for apartment. If Ed's home was in this state, what state would Ed be in? The bedroom door was closed, so he pushed it open and prepared for the worst. And even though he had prepared himself, he hadn't been expecting it to be this bad.

Instant ramen cups were scattered everywhere, and the TV was left on but not on any specific channel. Books were stacked and dispersed throughout the floor and every available surface, the curtains had been sloppily pulled closed, blocking out any of the possible sunlight and the lights were off. And sitting on the bed, wrapped in an old blanket, was Edward. Edward's eyes were ringed with dark circles, the spark from his usually fiery eyes was gone, leaving them a dull gold. His hair was loose from his braid, and wasn't washed. He was still in his pajamas, -which consisted of boxers and a tank top- despite the fact it was well past lunch time, edging on early evening. Was Edward petrified of who he was, who he had become since Alphonse's death?

"Ed?" Roy asked softly, sitting on the bed next to his best friend.

The blond did not reply, didn't even look in his direction. Instead he focused on the picture frame that was in his hands, the last picture of him and Alphonse together he had taken.

"Hey... Are you okay?"

Lackluster eyes slowly met his, and Ed nodded before replying. "I-I'm fine." His hoarse voice whispered softly.

Edward was hiding from everyone, denying that he needed someone to be there for him.

"Ed, come on, I'm your best friend. I know you're not fine." Roy told him, turning towards him on the bed. "You can tell me what's wrong."

To be honest, Roy was almost afraid of this Edward. The Edward he knew was brave and brash, outgoing and strong. But this person sitting next to him was just a shell of his best friend. Looking down to the picture clutched in the other boy's hands, Roy's obsidian eyes spotted angry red lines marring his abnormally pale and skinny wrist.

It was as if the world around him had stopped. Edward, the person he loved so much, was hurting himself. The strong, fearless Edward wanted to die, or at least cause himself pain. Roy had known that Edward wasn't in a stable state, that he was depressed and lonely, but he had thought Ed just needed some time to himself.

Apparently, that was the worst choice Roy could've made.

The raven-haired teen was furious with himself. He should've seen the signs, he should've been there for Ed. Ed needed him, his best friend, his crush, had needed him and he hadn't been there. And now Ed was hurting himself. What if he hadn't come today? Or what if he had gotten here too late, and Ed had gone through with it completely? The cuts were fresh and scabbed over, dark red staining the smooth skin.

"There's nothing wrong." Ed muttered, his voice breaking.

"Ed, please..." Roy softly grabbed Ed's left wrist, holding it between the two of them where the both could see the wounds Ed had made himself. There were so many... New and old, scabbed over and scars, marking up and down his whole arm vertically and horizontally like tiger stripes.

The blond quickly withdrew his hand and dropped the picture frame in his lap, bringing both hands up to his face and covering his eyes.

"Ed, please, remove your hands from over your eyes. For me, Ed." Roy found his own voice cracking as he looked at the usually strong teen, but he continued nonetheless. "I know... That want to leave. But Ed, please." His voice got noticeably softer, but he finished his last thought. "Don't take your life away from me."

Roy remembered that last time that Ed and him had gone out with their group of friends, -consisting of Riza, Maes, Jean, Heymans, Vato and Kain- after Al had died, and remembered how Ed had been like a ghost, like he was just merely passing by the people he knew. The people he called his friends. And every time one of them called, texted or visited and asked how Ed was doing, he would always say that he was fine. To people who didn't know him like Roy did, they might believe him. Ed could be a convincing liar, after all. But Roy saw how Ed lost his sway and glow.

Ed still hadn't replied to him, but he had partly removed his hands from his eyes, so Roy continued on. "I stopped by to let you know... There are people who care about you. People like me. We're all worried about you."

There was only silence, but the hands had dropped from Ed's face, his tried eyes uncovered and staring into Roy's concerned obsidian eyes. "Would you let me know your plans tonight?"

"You should go." Ed replied quietly.

The desolate tone the other teen spoke in was evidence enough to confirm Roy's fears. He hadn't been there for Ed, and now the blond wanted to die. He was _planning_ on dying.

"I'm not leaving until we both see light." The words stumbled out of his mouth on their own accord, but he meant it. Until both he and Edward saw the light again, he wouldn't leave. It was only early evening, but he would stay here until the sun rose again if that's what Edward needed.

Ed turned towards him, his mouth parting as if he wanted to say something, but he didn't.

"I have nothing else left to say, but Ed, I'll listen to you all day." Edward looked rather dubious at Roy's comment. "Yes, I will." Even if it took all day and all night, Roy would just sit here and listen to Ed and all his worries.

As long as Ed didn't take his life away from him.

"I'm sorry, okay?" Roy started, looking down at his own lap. "I'm sorry, Ed." Roy saw Edward's bewildered expression at his apology, but he continued. "I'm sorry that I wasn't here for you. I should've been. I should've been here when you needed me, and I wasn't." Roy choked out an unamused laugh. "Some friend I am, huh?"

There was a moment of silence, but Ed quickly broke that. "You... You don't have to apologize. There's... There's nothing to apologize for. You didn't do anything wrong. This isn't your fault Roy, you know that."

"Well, Ed, if it's not my fault then who's is it? I'm the one who wasn't here for you when you needed me."

"Dammit Roy..." Ed croaked, his voice raw. "It's my fault, okay? I'm the one who pushed you away, I pushed all of you away. So don't you even think of blaming yourself, you idiot."

"It's not your fault either, Ed."

They sat in silence, and somehow, Roy's hand found itself in Edward's. Still, neither of the two said a word. They simply sat there on the edge of Edward's bed with their hands in between the two of them, fingers lacing together as rain sounded from outside. Minutes passed like that, and Roy contemplated the words that Edward spoke to him just moments before. At least Edward didn't blame him, though that wouldn't stop him from blaming himself. Damn, he was in love with this kid, how could he just leave him alone like that? He knew that Edward was depressed, he knew that Edward wasn't in a stable place of mind since Al's death, he knew all of that and still... And still he had let Edward sit here, all alone, in the dark bedroom with the curtains shut on the outside world.

"I just... I want you to be okay, Ed."

At those words, Ed lifted his eyes from his lap, studying the sincere expression on Roy's face. "I'll be okay, Roy."

Roy continued speaking as if he hadn't heard Ed speak at all. "I want you to smile again, and I want you to be happy."

"If you're here with me, I think I can manage that." The blond whispered, embarrassed.

Still, Roy continued. "I want you to laugh with me and ah, hell, I want you to be with me. Always."

Blushing, Ed replied. "...And I always want to be with you."

Their eyes met, onyx and gold clashing against each other. The sparks were returning to Edward's dull eyes, and hope shined brightly in Roy's obsidian orbs. They could do this, they could be happy. Edward would get better, he just needed some help. And Roy would be there to help him. It would take time, but Roy would be there. It would be hard, and sometimes Ed would want to give up on it all, give up on the world around him and himself. But Roy would be there to help him stand up again. After all, when you loved someone, that's what you did for them. You help them get back on their feet no matter how many times they stumble and fall.

"So then promise me, Edward."

Ed looked at him, his head tilting to the side in confusion.

"Promise you won't take your life away from me."

Roy's heart thumped loudly as he waited for the reply, and for a moment he thought he might die of anticipation. He swore this wa"s the longest moment of his life as he waited for Edward's reply, but finally, he saw the turn of Edward's lips as they twitched upwards in a small smile, his eyes sparkling.

"I promise."

_End_

**Don't forget to review! I hope you enjoyed the story! I didn't really like the ending, but this was a fun story to write, so I hope you liked reading it as much as I liked writing it. **


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